(Huge thanks to TadParker for doing the timestamps!) 0:00 Intro 00:48 Endymion | John Lyly 01:26 The Dictionary of Lost Words | Pip Williams 03:27 Literary Cultures and Medieval and Early Modern Childhoods | Edited by Naomi Miller and Diane Purkiss 03:59 The Body Keeps the Score | Bessel van der Kolk 04:39 Elizabeth Tyrwhit’s Morning and Evening Prayers | Edited by Susan Felch 06:05 Candide | Voltaire 07:06 The Tragedy of Cleopatra | Samuel Daniel 07:49 The French History | Anne Dowriche 08:44 The Blazing World and Other Writings | Margaret Cavendish 10:04 The arraignment of lewd, idle, froward, and unconstant women | Joseph Swetnam 11:30 Jude the Obscure | Thomas Hardy 12:30 Catechisms Written for Mothers, School Mistresses, and Children | Paula McQuade 13:09 Catechisms and Women's Writing in Seventeenth-Century England | Paula McQuade 13:22 My Brother’s Ghost | Allan Ahlberg 13:49 Time as a Mother | Ocean Vuong 14:11 Hansel and Gretel | Neil Gaiman 15:40 Mary Sidney Herbert’s Antonius and Thomas Kyd’s Cornelia | Mary Sidney Herbert and Thomas Kyd 17:19 The Cry of a Stone (Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies) | Anna Trapnel 18:41 A Discourse of Life and Death, by Mornay; Antonius by Ro. Garnier | Ph Mornay, Ro Garnier 18:57 Imagining Cleopatra: Performing Gender and Power in Early Modern England | Yasmin Arshad 19:27 Crime and Punishment | Fyodor Dostoevsky 20:58 The Tragedy of Mariam | Elizabeth Cary 21:40 Lyra's Oxford | Philip Pullman 22:01 Island of Whispers | Frances Hardinge 23:10 Salve Deus Rex Judæorum | Aemilia Lanyer 23:37 Milk and Honey | Rupi Kaur 24:15 The Sidney Psalter | Philip Sidney, Mary Sidney 24:43 The War Poems | Siegfried Sassoon 25:19 Reading Children in Early Modern Culture | Edel Lamb 25:34 Documents of Performance in Early Modern England | Tiffany Stern 25:59 The Whitsun Weddings | Philip Larkin 26:10 Oedipus Rex | Sophocles 26:37 Doctor Faustus | Christopher Marlowe 28:00 Oedipus at Colonus | Sophocles 28:07 Order and Disorder | Lucy Hutchinson 29:03 Reading It Wrong: An Alternative History of Early 18th Century Literature | Abigail Williams 30:25 Book Parts | Dennis Duncan and Adam Smyth 30:46 On the Shortness of Life | Seneca 31:28 Gallant | V.E. Schwab 32:20 Nausea | Jean-Paul Sartre 33:31 Good Bones | Margaret Atwood 33:57 The Hunchback of Notre-Dame | Victor Hugo 35:56 Achilles | Elizabeth Cook 36:24 Grief is the Thing with Feathers | Max Porter 36:50 With Faith and Physic: The Life of a Tudor Gentlewoman | Linda Pollock 37:33 The Drama of Being a Child: The Search for the True Self | Alice Miller 37:50 Three Tragedies by Renaissance Women | Edited by Diane Purkiss 38:17 The Child Reader, 1700-1840 | M.O. Grenby 38:24 The Renaissance: Studies in Art and Poetry | Walter Pater 39:32 The Girl Who Couldn't Read | John Harding 40:48 Autobiography in Early Modern England | Adam Smyth 41:00 Oxford Botanic Garden & Arboretum: A Brief History 41:18 Jung on Alchemy | C. G. Jung 41:45 Micrographia | Robert Hooke 42:41 The Five People You Meet in Heaven | Mitch Albom 43:47 Bluets | Maggie Nelson 44:19 The Reappearance of Rachel Price | Holly Jackson 44:49 Girl, Interrupted | Susanna Kaysen 45:26 Practice | Rosalind Brown 45:56 The Cousins | Karen M. McManus 46:26 Wilder Girls | Rory Power 47:00 Ophelia Swam: An Oxford Novel | Kelley Swain 47:57 Devotion | Patti Smith 49:50 Love Letters | Virginia Woolf, Vita Sackville-West 50:33 Milton's Comus | John Milton 51:34 Emma | Jane Austen 53:39 The Bacchae | Euripides 53:54 Little House on the Prairie | Laura Ingalls Wilder 54:20 Secrets at Malory Towers | Enid Blyton, Pamela Cox 54:57 Tuck Everlasting | Natalie Babbitt 55:23 Teenage Writings | Jane Austen 56:03 Austen After 200: New Reading Spaces | Kerry Sinanan, Annika Bautz, Daniel Cook 56:27 Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking | Susan Cain 57:01 The Juvenilia of Jane Austen and Charlotte Brontë | Frances Beer, Jane Austen, Charlotte Bront 57:32 Glass Town: The Imaginary World of the Brontës | Isabel Greenberg 58:16 The Drownings | Hazel Barkworth 59:03 Imaginary Friend | Stephen Chbosky 59:48 To the Lighthouse | Virginia Woolf 1:01:30 Once Upon a Time in the North | Philip Pullman 1:02:32 The Fortnight in September | R.C. Sherriff 1:04:04 Atomic Habits | James Clear 1:04:17 Macbeth | William Shakespeare 1:04:54 The Atlas Six | Olivie Blake 1:05:52 Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell | Susanna Clarke 1:07:02 Steal Like an Artist | Austin Kleon 1:07:27 Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World | Vicki Myron, Bret Witter 1:07:55 It Was Snowing Butterflies | Charles Darwin 1:08:05 Tom Smith's Christmas Crackers: An Illustrated History | Peter Kimpton 1:08:36 A Little Princess | Frances Hodgson Burnett 1:08:49 Sketchy, Doubtful, Incomplete Jottings | Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 1:09:09 Faust, First Part | Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 1:10:16 SantaLand Diaries | David Sedaris 1:10:38 The Quiet Little Woman: A Christmas Story | Louisa May Alcott 1:11:15 A Children's Literary Christmas: An Anthology | Anna James 1:11:33 A Christmas Carol | Charles Dickens 1:11:46 Insomniac Dreams | Vladimir Nabokov 1:13:13 Top 5 books of the year
im so grateful for people who make long-form content :,) nowadays i feel like shorts and other 6-second/split screen bs just overwhelms the media ecosystem. these kinds of vids really feel like a proper conversation and substantial experience. end rant
I like watching your reading roundups because you give me ideas of books to read - and I like hearing your thoughts on the books you’ve read even if I’m not going to read them!
I just love your book videos because you are so excited to talk about books, and I like seeing that unadulterated joy. I also enjoy books and nature and I feel in another life we would have been good friends :)
SO motivating! I do love these long wrap ups, and I so hope you do more regular wrap ups, monthly or seasonally, it would be lovely! I hope you do a video on your next year reading goals and generally post more booktube content!
As soon as I saw the title of this video I immediately grabbed my notebook and pen to make my tbr list😊 Thank you for sharing❤️ Also, I would love if you made one of these videos seasonally📚
I love watching this because I wonder if seeing what Ruby likes and doesn't like gives us some insight into her own personality, and it swells my TBR. Plus her enthusiasm is just infectious and charming!
I read 99 books in 2024, and it looks like we read some of the same books, Ruby! I have not yet read Insomniac Dreams, but I am a huge Nabokov fan and will put the book on my TBR for the new year. Thank you for being inspiring, Ruby! I love your content.
@@DeckersMountain I am unsure of precisely how many hours a day I spend on each book, or what that is collated into weekly, monthly, or yearly, and while I do have a very fast reading speed, there are also times when I deliberately slow down the pace somewhat, especially for longer books, while also reading shorter ones in between at the same time. I am not sure if there is any magic formula, as such, other than read as much as you want and as much as life's demands will allow and do not be afraid to read more than one book at the same time. I love my local bookstore, but libraries are equally indispensable in the reader's and writer's journey. I am also a writer, so I read a great deal, and then I write a great deal, too. Reading for me is a passion but also a necessity, if that makes sense. Have a great 2025, and thank you!!
@RubyGranger8 I love your content and its intelligent, sagacious kindness, Ruby! I have been a stalwart fan of yours since 2020 and you still inspire me now, whether its in reading goals, veganism (I have been vegan almost two years now and love it!), productivity goals, etc. Thank you for everything!
I always look forward to your annual announcement that you will speed up the process a bit, since you've been talking about the books way longer than you anticipated! I could watch a ten hour video about your reading year, I love to hear about all these subjects I don't know much about yet, little snippets of information to expand my own knowledge :)
I’m thankful for Ruby of being the one who help me introduce classic books, it’s insightful and feed my mind with perspectives that I never thought or exposed to:)
Ruby, I am amazed with all the wonderful books which you read in 2024. You certainly read a lot of them. It really shows that your really enjoy reading. This year I read Vladimir Nabokov's book called 'Lolita' which was very good.
I'm amazed at how you can remember what each book was about. I seem to get a lot out of a book whilst I'm reading it, but then after I move on to the next books, I can't remember what previous ones were about. Maybe I just have a poor memory. Someone else said that people tend to move on quickly without taking time to think about what they just read and absorb it, so that is a goal I have this year. You explain all of your books so well, and I love your enthusiasm for them. :)
My wife and I look forward to these videos every year. In a time of declining literacy, it's encouraging to see your enthusiasm for niche corners of literature. Susanna Clarke is amazing. You're right that Lear, Macbeth and Winter's Tale are Shakespeare's best. There's no better poetry than his later plays.
The dictionary of lost words is one of my favorites!! Pip Williams came out with a new book this year set in the same world called The Bookbinder of Jericho. It is the story of two sisters who work at the bindery. loved it almost more than her first book & highly recommend!
Do not be sorry Ruby for reviewing the books you’ve read. It’s really helpful for me as someone who’s still navigates different genres and tales:> Also, Jane Eyre is the best book I’ve read last year💚
Malory towers series are SO comforting! I've not read the re-tellings but I think that you've convinced me to...re-readings of your favourite childhood books are like a blanket and a warm mug of tea on a cold winter day:) I think you'd love the "Agency for Scandal" by Laura Wood x
Aren't they just! I'm pleased you're a fellow fan! Which is your favourite? And yes, you must read Secrets at Malory Towers (even if you don't read any of the others!). You know my taste well because I LOVED Agency for Scandal! It was brilliant!
@RubyGranger8 Thank you for replying! My favourite Malory Towers is definitely the third form - what's yours? I'm so glad you enjoyed Agency for Scandal!
@RubyGranger8 I think you'd really enjoy "Things a Bright Girl Can Do", and "Yours from the Tower," both by Sally Nicholls. Also, "The Island" by C.L. Taylor and "Stateless" by Elizabeth Wein. Hopefully one of those is helpful!x
This is a fantastic list - thanks for sharing, Ruby! My favourite read this year was 'The Secret History' by Donna Tarrt. Very atmosopheric, clever writing that will definitely be worth a reread, especially after I learn a bit more about Greek mythology. In fact, 'The Bacchae' is mentioned and plays a major role in significant events in the book, so Euripides is being added to my TBR list! The characters are also very intriguing in 'The Secret History' - you love to hate AND hate to love them.
I adored this video! As a fellow literature major, I want to say you have fantastic taste. If you’re into psychology and existentialism, you might like Herman Hesse’s works. I recently read his Steppenwolf, which details the inner life of an existential scholar and vagabond type who conceives of himself as part wolf (from the Steppe), and part man. The narrator contests this and suggests that our souls are more multifaceted than that, and so neatly packaging ourselves into certain identities can lead to inner conflict.
Thanks for this video Ruby ❤ , I used to add a lot of your book recommendations to my TBR, and this 2024 I’ve read some of them… The ocean at the end of the lane was my favorite 🥳
@ Oh, I'm glad you're reading this. I don't know how to describe or explain how much I enjoyed this book🤩. It made me imagine each of the scenes and characters. I don't know what your opinion is about the book?😊
Thank you for the video, I'v added so much books on my TBR but I'm so happy with these new discoveries and I love so much listening to you talking about books so I would be delighted if you did a seasonal wrap up (but no pressure). My favourite books of 2024 were: -Witches, Mona Chollet -Screams in the drizzle, Yu Hua -Kamouraska, Anne Hébert -The sweet taste of memories, Beate Teresa Hanika -2 perfume burner, Eileen Chang
✨🕯EVERY YEAR I WATCH THIS VIDEO RUBY BUT I HAVE ONE RECCOMENDATION, PLEASE MAKE A WRITTEN OUT LIST AND POST IT EITHER IN THE COMMENTS OR ON YOUR LITERARY PAGE. IT WOULD BE SO MYCH MORE EASIER INSTEAD IF HAVING TO KEEP PAUSING THE VIDEO TO WRITE DOWN THE BOOKS AND AUTHORS. THANK YOU THOUGH FOR SHARING YOUR YEAR IN BOOKS FOR 2024! 🕯✨
Really enjoyed this list! There are a lot of things I'm familiar with, but many others that I have not heard, but can tell I would love. Really appreciate the video :)
ln 2025 I highly recommend everyone to read Your Life Your Game by Keezano. It beautifully shows how connecting with God and building meaningful relationships can lead to spiritual growth and success in both your personal and professional life. This book truly changed my life..a must-read. God bless
. I like your enthusiasm, but any god, assuming he, she, they actually exist, does not cure diseases or make better solar cells or figure out how to biodegrade tons of plastic waste. Why need more scientists, not more theologians. 👩🏫 .
I've added so many interesting books to my already huge TBR, but anyway, I had a blast watching your video, I love when bookworms talk about books, it's so great. My favourite book of 2024 has to be either "Death on the Nile" by Agatha Christie or "The Reader" by Bernhard Schlink.☺
I read 12 books this year and that was great for me. Sorry but I HATE these unrealistic reading challenges because for a lot of us is unrealistic. I work full time, have a family, can't afford to read that many books anymore.
I have walked away with nine new books I would love to read from this *incredible* list. I did, indeed, add them to my already towering TBR. Thank you so much for taking the time to put this video together, Ruby. Your efforts are much appreciated. I have never seen someone summarize books quite as well as you; you make every description extremely comprehensive and engaging!
Thank you so much for these! My top book of 2024 was Below Deck by Sophie Hardcastle. It's about a girl who works on a yacht as the only female crew member. The writing style is just so unlike anything I've read before and will literally transport you to another world. Weird but also it makes so much sense when you read it
I live in latin America and all I read is fantasy so I know close to nothing of English literature but there’s something peaceful about Ruby speaking so eloquently about her books that made me stay for the whole video 🤍😌
Hello Ruby! I always look forward to your video at the end of the year, and this time I even have some questions. Before that I wanted to say something about seasonal videos/end of year wrap-up. What do you think of seasonally filming the books you've read (maybe with a time limit in mind for the end video?) and putting them all together at the end of the year? I thought of this because I think you not doing more frequent reading round-ups is unique, but by breaking up the filming itself you'll be less worn out and also be able to remember more of the books you've read. Anyway, just a thought. My question is: do you mostly own or borrow the books you've read? Where do you store them? How do you choose which books to own? I actually held out on getting a large bookshelf (or any really) for the longest time but then I just had piles of books all over the place. I finally caved and got a bookshelf this year and it made me wonder about your set-up.
This was such a great video! I am adding nearly all your 18th century reads to my tbr. That was my focus in my grad fellowship, and I still love to read both primary sources and scholarship. I am so glad you liked “Emma”. I think it’s Austen’s masterpiece and the greatest novel ever written in English. Frances Hardinge is incredible; I love her stories so much. I think you’d enjoy “A Skinful of Shadows” if you haven’t already read it. It’s set in the English civil war and has a lot of great spooky elements. “To the Lighthouse” is a tough read for sure. I had to read it a few times to really grapple with it, but it’s very rewarding.
I forgot to say I’d love to see seasonal wrap ups! While I love a good long year end wrap up, I think seasonal also makes sense, and I’d enjoy watching them.
I really loved this video, even though many of the books I'll probably never read, just listening to you talk about them so excitedly is amazing. As for recommendations, I have two: I'm currently reading The Secret History, and so far I'm really enjoying it. The writing style is quite unique, it feels like a feverdream a lot of the time and you have the same feeling like the main character - that you don't quite know what is going on, but you are so close to finding out. You mentioned you liked Crime and Punishment, and while I haven't read that, The Secret History does have a similar premise with a murder happening and a group of students having to deal with it. From what I have seen it is quite divisive, some people love it, some hate it, but I think you'd enjoy it (if you haven't aready read it ofc). Also I do have to recommend one of my favourite book series of all time, which is the Lockwood & Co series by Jonathan Stroud. He is an incredible writer, and it deals with ghost hunting agencies run by kids, so it is kind of fantasy, but not high fantasy, so you should still enjoy that aspect. The writing style is fantastic, so witty and funny, the characters are to die for, and the worldbuilding and overarching plot (there are five books) are incredible with an ending that does not disappoint (contrary to lots of other book series that go on for so long). I also was happy to hear that The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue was your favourite book of 2023, because I read it a while ago after you recommended it as an autumn read and I loved it so much it is my favourite book of 2024 :)))
Hello Ruby - my booklist to read just got larger 😂 I just finished reading Emma last week and loved it. Currently reading Thérèse Raquin by Émile Zola as my first French novel. I would say that having seasonal book reviews would be a lovely idea but see what others think. Thank you for your vlog. 🥰
You are beautiful, Ruby! Greetings from Russia !! I love your videos so much. I don’t understand most of books showed in the video, but I can’t explain, how much you motivate me reading books!!
Hi Ruby, I've been meaning to add a book to my wishlist you recommended in one of your videos quite a long while ago.. But I can't for the life of me find the title nor the video you mentioned it in... It's a compilation of women's letters and journal entries for each day of the year, if I remember correctly. Hope you can help me out (or anyone else who reads this and knows what book I'm looking for). 😇 Also, don't ever stop sharing your reads and recs! I've added several titles mentioned in this video. And if anyone cares, my recent reads and new additions to my TBR include: "Legends & Lattes" by Travis Baldree (highly recommend! very low stake, cosy and endearing), "Empire of Shadows" by Jacquelyn Benson (only a few chapters in but very exciting and fun already!) "The Sisterhood" by Liza Mundy (only a few pages in), "Femina" by Janina Ramirez (only a few pages in) and lastly the "Six of Crows" duology by Leigh Bardugo. 📚
Hello Ruby, I have just found your channel. You have some really interesting videos. Thank you for giving so many insights into some wonderful books. I am reading Thomas Hardy's books again. He is an expert on human relationships frailties & complex characters.
@RubyGranger8 oh it is very good, called Jude - 1996 with Kate Winslet. I watched it when it first came out, unfortunately can not find it anywhere now. Too old, I guess.
@RubyGranger8 Don't worry haha! If any of my fellow Germans come after you please don't take it to heart and I very much apologize if they (in unfortunately typical German fashion) take such things a tad too serious. Anyway, thank you for your lovely reading list, you inspired me to give Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell a second chance!
Bit sad to read mean comments on this, I hope you don't take them to heart. Very interesting round up of your reading year, have added a few to my neverending tbr list 😂 wishing you all the best in 2025 Ruby, your videos are so comforting to watch.
She got multiple comments on TikTok about her incorrect pronunciation of Goethe like a month ago (the comments were generally nice and respectful). Kinda weird to think that Ruby simply ignored them all..
I love all of your videos and the books you recommend! My favourite book of the year was Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami! I know you didn't ask for any recommendations but i'd totally recommend to you to read Carlos Ruiz Zafón, specially The Shadow of the Wind, my favourite book of all times. It's a beautiful book about books, it's magical, you should read it bc i bet you'd love it.
The girl who couldn’t read is a continuation of Florence and Giles. I read the first book over 10 years ago and really enjoyed it, but heard that the second one was not very good. For some reason I can’t find the girl who couldn’t read for purchase, but I would say maybe check Florence and Giles if you haven’t yet. I’ve been meaning to reread it to see if I still feel the same way about it years later.
The Gardener's Year by Karel Capek (ruminations on gardening in the shadow of oncoming fascism in austira) and The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry (poetry, a lot on nature and farming and quiet moments) were my favorites of the year! I think you'd like both :) thanks for sharing these - excited to add some to my tbr!
Stonehouse Devotional by Charlotte Wood. It was a shortlisted book in The Booker Prize last year. Another one is Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt.
Thankyou for your lovely book reviews Ruby, I watched your Christmas books review which was wonderful, it inspired me to go and buy 3 of the books, A literary Christmas an anthology, The miraculous sweet makers the frost fair, The Nutcracker by Alexandre Dumas which is such a beautiful pretty book with the gold detail and leatherback. I still want to buy The Nutcracker by Sanna Annukka and Little women the puffin in bloom edition which you showed us. I am much older than you at almost 46 yrs old but I still like to read children’s books, sadly my children do not read and will not read regardless of the mountains of books I have bought them over the years, modern technology, xbox, iPads has taken over them which is such a shame
Hi Ruby, this seems like such a lovely video (I'm just about to watch it now!). I have a potential video idea, maybe something like how you manage to fit reading into your day? :)
A book I recommend if you haven't read it already is 'The Girl With the Lousing Voice' by Abi Daré. The writing style in it is really interesting, and you could get through the book within a day or two. I couldn't put it down!
(Huge thanks to TadParker for doing the timestamps!)
0:00 Intro
00:48 Endymion | John Lyly
01:26 The Dictionary of Lost Words | Pip Williams
03:27 Literary Cultures and Medieval and Early Modern Childhoods | Edited by Naomi Miller and Diane Purkiss
03:59 The Body Keeps the Score | Bessel van der Kolk
04:39 Elizabeth Tyrwhit’s Morning and Evening Prayers | Edited by Susan Felch
06:05 Candide | Voltaire
07:06 The Tragedy of Cleopatra | Samuel Daniel
07:49 The French History | Anne Dowriche
08:44 The Blazing World and Other Writings | Margaret Cavendish
10:04 The arraignment of lewd, idle, froward, and unconstant women | Joseph Swetnam
11:30 Jude the Obscure | Thomas Hardy
12:30 Catechisms Written for Mothers, School Mistresses, and Children | Paula McQuade
13:09 Catechisms and Women's Writing in Seventeenth-Century England | Paula McQuade
13:22 My Brother’s Ghost | Allan Ahlberg
13:49 Time as a Mother | Ocean Vuong
14:11 Hansel and Gretel | Neil Gaiman
15:40 Mary Sidney Herbert’s Antonius and Thomas Kyd’s Cornelia | Mary Sidney Herbert and Thomas Kyd
17:19 The Cry of a Stone (Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies) | Anna Trapnel
18:41 A Discourse of Life and Death, by Mornay; Antonius by Ro. Garnier | Ph Mornay, Ro Garnier
18:57 Imagining Cleopatra: Performing Gender and Power in Early Modern England | Yasmin Arshad
19:27 Crime and Punishment | Fyodor Dostoevsky
20:58 The Tragedy of Mariam | Elizabeth Cary
21:40 Lyra's Oxford | Philip Pullman
22:01 Island of Whispers | Frances Hardinge
23:10 Salve Deus Rex Judæorum | Aemilia Lanyer
23:37 Milk and Honey | Rupi Kaur
24:15 The Sidney Psalter | Philip Sidney, Mary Sidney
24:43 The War Poems | Siegfried Sassoon
25:19 Reading Children in Early Modern Culture | Edel Lamb
25:34 Documents of Performance in Early Modern England | Tiffany Stern
25:59 The Whitsun Weddings | Philip Larkin
26:10 Oedipus Rex | Sophocles
26:37 Doctor Faustus | Christopher Marlowe
28:00 Oedipus at Colonus | Sophocles
28:07 Order and Disorder | Lucy Hutchinson
29:03 Reading It Wrong: An Alternative History of Early 18th Century Literature | Abigail Williams
30:25 Book Parts | Dennis Duncan and Adam Smyth
30:46 On the Shortness of Life | Seneca
31:28 Gallant | V.E. Schwab
32:20 Nausea | Jean-Paul Sartre
33:31 Good Bones | Margaret Atwood
33:57 The Hunchback of Notre-Dame | Victor Hugo
35:56 Achilles | Elizabeth Cook
36:24 Grief is the Thing with Feathers | Max Porter
36:50 With Faith and Physic: The Life of a Tudor Gentlewoman | Linda Pollock
37:33 The Drama of Being a Child: The Search for the True Self | Alice Miller
37:50 Three Tragedies by Renaissance Women | Edited by Diane Purkiss
38:17 The Child Reader, 1700-1840 | M.O. Grenby
38:24 The Renaissance: Studies in Art and Poetry | Walter Pater
39:32 The Girl Who Couldn't Read | John Harding
40:48 Autobiography in Early Modern England | Adam Smyth
41:00 Oxford Botanic Garden & Arboretum: A Brief History
41:18 Jung on Alchemy | C. G. Jung
41:45 Micrographia | Robert Hooke
42:41 The Five People You Meet in Heaven | Mitch Albom
43:47 Bluets | Maggie Nelson
44:19 The Reappearance of Rachel Price | Holly Jackson
44:49 Girl, Interrupted | Susanna Kaysen
45:26 Practice | Rosalind Brown
45:56 The Cousins | Karen M. McManus
46:26 Wilder Girls | Rory Power
47:00 Ophelia Swam: An Oxford Novel | Kelley Swain
47:57 Devotion | Patti Smith
49:50 Love Letters | Virginia Woolf, Vita Sackville-West
50:33 Milton's Comus | John Milton
51:34 Emma | Jane Austen
53:39 The Bacchae | Euripides
53:54 Little House on the Prairie | Laura Ingalls Wilder
54:20 Secrets at Malory Towers | Enid Blyton, Pamela Cox
54:57 Tuck Everlasting | Natalie Babbitt
55:23 Teenage Writings | Jane Austen
56:03 Austen After 200: New Reading Spaces | Kerry Sinanan, Annika Bautz, Daniel Cook
56:27 Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking | Susan Cain
57:01 The Juvenilia of Jane Austen and Charlotte Brontë | Frances Beer, Jane Austen, Charlotte Bront
57:32 Glass Town: The Imaginary World of the Brontës | Isabel Greenberg
58:16 The Drownings | Hazel Barkworth
59:03 Imaginary Friend | Stephen Chbosky
59:48 To the Lighthouse | Virginia Woolf
1:01:30 Once Upon a Time in the North | Philip Pullman
1:02:32 The Fortnight in September | R.C. Sherriff
1:04:04 Atomic Habits | James Clear
1:04:17 Macbeth | William Shakespeare
1:04:54 The Atlas Six | Olivie Blake
1:05:52 Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell | Susanna Clarke
1:07:02 Steal Like an Artist | Austin Kleon
1:07:27 Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World | Vicki Myron, Bret Witter
1:07:55 It Was Snowing Butterflies | Charles Darwin
1:08:05 Tom Smith's Christmas Crackers: An Illustrated History | Peter Kimpton
1:08:36 A Little Princess | Frances Hodgson Burnett
1:08:49 Sketchy, Doubtful, Incomplete Jottings | Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
1:09:09 Faust, First Part | Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
1:10:16 SantaLand Diaries | David Sedaris
1:10:38 The Quiet Little Woman: A Christmas Story | Louisa May Alcott
1:11:15 A Children's Literary Christmas: An Anthology | Anna James
1:11:33 A Christmas Carol | Charles Dickens
1:11:46 Insomniac Dreams | Vladimir Nabokov
1:13:13 Top 5 books of the year
Have you seen the film based on the book girl interrupted with winona ryder? Great film! X
Thank you.
im so grateful for people who make long-form content :,) nowadays i feel like shorts and other 6-second/split screen bs just overwhelms the media ecosystem. these kinds of vids really feel like a proper conversation and substantial experience. end rant
Real!
I heartily agree! I love long form content because it allows me to pay attention more. and I appreciate the time and effort the creators put into it.
Agree!
oh my god 1 hour + of ruby ???? what a good start to the year
Literally my reaction
Yes !!
Couldn't agree more😂❤🎉
💯🍀
Yeah, love the sit-downs because I feel like we get more Ruby that way.
yes to the seasonal wrap ups!
I'll start doing them!:)x
I like watching your reading roundups because you give me ideas of books to read - and I like hearing your thoughts on the books you’ve read even if I’m not going to read them!
I just love your book videos because you are so excited to talk about books, and I like seeing that unadulterated joy. I also enjoy books and nature and I feel in another life we would have been good friends :)
girl culd talk abut books all day😂
this was glass Ruby btw. There is another one who hates books and like drinking whisky 😂
Yes, she really lights up when talking about a topic that interests her,.
Absolutely adore the way Ruby's face lights up when she talks about books! ☺☺☺
Over an hour of Ruby book reviewing! Hell to the YES. Thank you, Ruby, this makes my morning.
I really hope you like watching! That's so lovely :)
SO motivating! I do love these long wrap ups, and I so hope you do more regular wrap ups, monthly or seasonally, it would be lovely! I hope you do a video on your next year reading goals and generally post more booktube content!
This feels like a Saturday night treat to have a book vlog over an hour long - many thanks Ruby!! 🫶🏻🥰🎉
Ah that's so lovely! I hope you enjoy it Nicole!
As soon as I saw the title of this video I immediately grabbed my notebook and pen to make my tbr list😊 Thank you for sharing❤️ Also, I would love if you made one of these videos seasonally📚
I love watching this because I wonder if seeing what Ruby likes and doesn't like gives us some insight into her own personality, and it swells my TBR. Plus her enthusiasm is just infectious and charming!
I'm so pleased you liked it, and I hope you walked away with some recommendations :)
I read 99 books in 2024, and it looks like we read some of the same books, Ruby! I have not yet read Insomniac Dreams, but I am a huge Nabokov fan and will put the book on my TBR for the new year. Thank you for being inspiring, Ruby! I love your content.
@@DeckersMountain I am unsure of precisely how many hours a day I spend on each book, or what that is collated into weekly, monthly, or yearly, and while I do have a very fast reading speed, there are also times when I deliberately slow down the pace somewhat, especially for longer books, while also reading shorter ones in between at the same time. I am not sure if there is any magic formula, as such, other than read as much as you want and as much as life's demands will allow and do not be afraid to read more than one book at the same time. I love my local bookstore, but libraries are equally indispensable in the reader's and writer's journey. I am also a writer, so I read a great deal, and then I write a great deal, too. Reading for me is a passion but also a necessity, if that makes sense. Have a great 2025, and thank you!!
@@brentmonnett953 This is so insightful and I love all of this... thank you for sharing
@RubyGranger8 I love your content and its intelligent, sagacious kindness, Ruby! I have been a stalwart fan of yours since 2020 and you still inspire me now, whether its in reading goals, veganism (I have been vegan almost two years now and love it!), productivity goals, etc. Thank you for everything!
This video was so cosy 🥰 I re-read A little Princess each year and The Secret Garden. Both are my comfort books 🥰
I love that you re-read them too!
I do not own one, but I hope soon:>
I must admit I kicked my feet a little when I saw this haha, very excited to have a delightfully long video about books from you to watch!
Vielen Dank für all die wunderbaren Buchempfehlungen, liebe Ruby.💖
This has always been my favorite video of yours!!! Thank you for the long video on books
Ahh that means a lot!
Ruby's enthusiasm is contagious!
Omg an hour long upload! Thanks Ruby ❤️❤️❤️
I always look forward to your annual announcement that you will speed up the process a bit, since you've been talking about the books way longer than you anticipated! I could watch a ten hour video about your reading year, I love to hear about all these subjects I don't know much about yet, little snippets of information to expand my own knowledge :)
I’m thankful for Ruby of being the one who help me introduce classic books, it’s insightful and feed my mind with perspectives that I never thought or exposed to:)
Ruby, I am amazed with all the wonderful books which you read in 2024. You certainly read a lot of them. It really shows that your really enjoy reading. This year I read Vladimir Nabokov's book called 'Lolita' which was very good.
I'm amazed at how you can remember what each book was about. I seem to get a lot out of a book whilst I'm reading it, but then after I move on to the next books, I can't remember what previous ones were about. Maybe I just have a poor memory. Someone else said that people tend to move on quickly without taking time to think about what they just read and absorb it, so that is a goal I have this year. You explain all of your books so well, and I love your enthusiasm for them. :)
I too have difficulty remembering what I’ve read and admire Ruby’s ability to recall these books so well.
My wife and I look forward to these videos every year. In a time of declining literacy, it's encouraging to see your enthusiasm for niche corners of literature. Susanna Clarke is amazing. You're right that Lear, Macbeth and Winter's Tale are Shakespeare's best. There's no better poetry than his later plays.
The dictionary of lost words is one of my favorites!! Pip Williams came out with a new book this year set in the same world called The Bookbinder of Jericho. It is the story of two sisters who work at the bindery. loved it almost more than her first book & highly recommend!
I’m going to look up The Bookbinder of Jericho. Thanks for the recommendation:)
Do not be sorry Ruby for reviewing the books you’ve read. It’s really helpful for me as someone who’s still navigates different genres and tales:>
Also, Jane Eyre is the best book I’ve read last year💚
Malory towers series are SO comforting! I've not read the re-tellings but I think that you've convinced me to...re-readings of your favourite childhood books are like a blanket and a warm mug of tea on a cold winter day:) I think you'd love the "Agency for Scandal" by Laura Wood x
Aren't they just! I'm pleased you're a fellow fan! Which is your favourite? And yes, you must read Secrets at Malory Towers (even if you don't read any of the others!).
You know my taste well because I LOVED Agency for Scandal! It was brilliant!
Which other books are your favourites, because I think we may have similar taste!
@RubyGranger8 Thank you for replying! My favourite Malory Towers is definitely the third form - what's yours? I'm so glad you enjoyed Agency for Scandal!
@RubyGranger8 I think you'd really enjoy "Things a Bright Girl Can Do", and "Yours from the Tower," both by Sally Nicholls. Also, "The Island" by C.L. Taylor and "Stateless" by Elizabeth Wein. Hopefully one of those is helpful!x
This is a fantastic list - thanks for sharing, Ruby!
My favourite read this year was 'The Secret History' by Donna Tarrt. Very atmosopheric, clever writing that will definitely be worth a reread, especially after I learn a bit more about Greek mythology. In fact, 'The Bacchae' is mentioned and plays a major role in significant events in the book, so Euripides is being added to my TBR list! The characters are also very intriguing in 'The Secret History' - you love to hate AND hate to love them.
I adored this video! As a fellow literature major, I want to say you have fantastic taste. If you’re into psychology and existentialism, you might like Herman Hesse’s works. I recently read his Steppenwolf, which details the inner life of an existential scholar and vagabond type who conceives of himself as part wolf (from the Steppe), and part man. The narrator contests this and suggests that our souls are more multifaceted than that, and so neatly packaging ourselves into certain identities can lead to inner conflict.
That is exactly the book a mentor most recently gave me! Your recommendation encourages me even more to look forward to reading it. 💡😺
Great video! Thanks for sharing the names of all the books. I will be reading few of the books from the list.
Thanks for this video Ruby ❤ , I used to add a lot of your book recommendations to my TBR, and this 2024 I’ve read some of them… The ocean at the end of the lane was my favorite 🥳
I have this book now beside my iPad while watching Ruby. In the middle of a re-read 😊
@ Oh, I'm glad you're reading this. I don't know how to describe or explain how much I enjoyed this book🤩. It made me imagine each of the scenes and characters. I don't know what your opinion is about the book?😊
Yay! So excited to watch ❤❤
I always look forward to this video every year Ruby!
My favourites by far in 2024 were the Raven Cycle series ☺️
I love the idea of the reading season round ups
Thank you for the effort of putting this review together. It was incredibly enjoyable. I definitely would appreciate a quarterly review.
Thank you for the video, I'v added so much books on my TBR but I'm so happy with these new discoveries and I love so much listening to you talking about books so I would be delighted if you did a seasonal wrap up (but no pressure). My favourite books of 2024 were:
-Witches, Mona Chollet
-Screams in the drizzle, Yu Hua
-Kamouraska, Anne Hébert
-The sweet taste of memories, Beate Teresa Hanika
-2 perfume burner, Eileen Chang
Love this, I needed new books for my TBR ❤
Oh my gosh, you keep inspiring me so much and I want to be just like you! Sending hugs
✨🕯EVERY YEAR I WATCH THIS VIDEO RUBY BUT I HAVE ONE RECCOMENDATION, PLEASE MAKE A WRITTEN OUT LIST AND POST IT EITHER IN THE COMMENTS OR ON YOUR LITERARY PAGE. IT WOULD BE SO MYCH MORE EASIER INSTEAD IF HAVING TO KEEP PAUSING THE VIDEO TO WRITE DOWN THE BOOKS AND AUTHORS. THANK YOU THOUGH FOR SHARING YOUR YEAR IN BOOKS FOR 2024! 🕯✨
Really enjoyed this list! There are a lot of things I'm familiar with, but many others that I have not heard, but can tell I would love. Really appreciate the video :)
I've been hoping and waiting for your favorite list of books and so happy it's here.
Thank you so much for this. I have put a few on my TBR LIST
You make them all sound so wonderful. Thank you for the reccos!
Got curious after hearing about book titled Guarded Laws of Money Manifestation, and now I’m hooked. Such a good find
I love this video every year!! Although maybe film in sections to preserve your energy 😂
Thanks for your tremendous effort of filming this, I know exactly how exhausting it is. But it's much appreciated by your viewers 🎉
One hour of Ruby talking about books ? ❤❤ ❤❤❤❤Thank you !
I'd love the seasonal wrap ups!
I had forgotten about The Blazing World and Cavendish! I read it ages ago. Very appreciative for the reminder
ln 2025 I highly recommend everyone to read Your Life Your Game by Keezano. It beautifully shows how connecting with God and building meaningful relationships can lead to spiritual growth and success in both your personal and professional life. This book truly changed my life..a must-read. God bless
thanks
Thank you 😊
.
I like your enthusiasm, but any god, assuming he, she, they actually exist, does not cure diseases or make better solar cells or figure out how to biodegrade tons of plastic waste.
Why need more scientists, not more theologians. 👩🏫
.
I love you and watch all your videos you inspire me always hopping you the best ❤
I've added so many interesting books to my already huge TBR, but anyway, I had a blast watching your video, I love when bookworms talk about books, it's so great. My favourite book of 2024 has to be either "Death on the Nile" by Agatha Christie or "The Reader" by Bernhard Schlink.☺
I read 12 books this year and that was great for me. Sorry but I HATE these unrealistic reading challenges because for a lot of us is unrealistic. I work full time, have a family, can't afford to read that many books anymore.
I have walked away with nine new books I would love to read from this *incredible* list. I did, indeed, add them to my already towering TBR. Thank you so much for taking the time to put this video together, Ruby. Your efforts are much appreciated. I have never seen someone summarize books quite as well as you; you make every description extremely comprehensive and engaging!
Thank you so much for these! My top book of 2024 was Below Deck by Sophie Hardcastle. It's about a girl who works on a yacht as the only female crew member. The writing style is just so unlike anything I've read before and will literally transport you to another world. Weird but also it makes so much sense when you read it
I live in latin America and all I read is fantasy so I know close to nothing of English literature but there’s something peaceful about Ruby speaking so eloquently about her books that made me stay for the whole video 🤍😌
Ah I'm so honoured you watched the whole thing!
Happy new year ruby🎉🎉
Hello Ruby! I always look forward to your video at the end of the year, and this time I even have some questions. Before that I wanted to say something about seasonal videos/end of year wrap-up. What do you think of seasonally filming the books you've read (maybe with a time limit in mind for the end video?) and putting them all together at the end of the year? I thought of this because I think you not doing more frequent reading round-ups is unique, but by breaking up the filming itself you'll be less worn out and also be able to remember more of the books you've read. Anyway, just a thought. My question is: do you mostly own or borrow the books you've read? Where do you store them? How do you choose which books to own? I actually held out on getting a large bookshelf (or any really) for the longest time but then I just had piles of books all over the place. I finally caved and got a bookshelf this year and it made me wonder about your set-up.
Was waiting for this video!
This was such a great video! I am adding nearly all your 18th century reads to my tbr. That was my focus in my grad fellowship, and I still love to read both primary sources and scholarship. I am so glad you liked “Emma”. I think it’s Austen’s masterpiece and the greatest novel ever written in English. Frances Hardinge is incredible; I love her stories so much. I think you’d enjoy “A Skinful of Shadows” if you haven’t already read it. It’s set in the English civil war and has a lot of great spooky elements. “To the Lighthouse” is a tough read for sure. I had to read it a few times to really grapple with it, but it’s very rewarding.
I forgot to say I’d love to see seasonal wrap ups! While I love a good long year end wrap up, I think seasonal also makes sense, and I’d enjoy watching them.
I really loved this video, even though many of the books I'll probably never read, just listening to you talk about them so excitedly is amazing. As for recommendations, I have two: I'm currently reading The Secret History, and so far I'm really enjoying it. The writing style is quite unique, it feels like a feverdream a lot of the time and you have the same feeling like the main character - that you don't quite know what is going on, but you are so close to finding out. You mentioned you liked Crime and Punishment, and while I haven't read that, The Secret History does have a similar premise with a murder happening and a group of students having to deal with it. From what I have seen it is quite divisive, some people love it, some hate it, but I think you'd enjoy it (if you haven't aready read it ofc).
Also I do have to recommend one of my favourite book series of all time, which is the Lockwood & Co series by Jonathan Stroud. He is an incredible writer, and it deals with ghost hunting agencies run by kids, so it is kind of fantasy, but not high fantasy, so you should still enjoy that aspect. The writing style is fantastic, so witty and funny, the characters are to die for, and the worldbuilding and overarching plot (there are five books) are incredible with an ending that does not disappoint (contrary to lots of other book series that go on for so long).
I also was happy to hear that The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue was your favourite book of 2023, because I read it a while ago after you recommended it as an autumn read and I loved it so much it is my favourite book of 2024 :)))
Hi Ruby I love the why you get so excited about books
Hello Ruby - my booklist to read just got larger 😂 I just finished reading Emma last week and loved it. Currently reading Thérèse Raquin by Émile Zola as my first French novel. I would say that having seasonal book reviews would be a lovely idea but see what others think. Thank you for your vlog. 🥰
I'm trying to just read 10 books this year which is a lot for me! ❤
Nothing wrong with that. She just tries to show off reading 98.
Nothing wrong with that indeed.
Came here solely for the review of Jonathon Strange and Mr Norrell. So glad you liked it! :)
You are beautiful, Ruby! Greetings from Russia !!
I love your videos so much. I don’t understand most of books showed in the video, but I can’t explain, how much you motivate me reading books!!
seasonal book reviews would be so good ✨
i come and find these videos every year i love them so much
Thank you, that was the best book related video I've listened to 🙂 recently. 👍
Ah that means a lot! x
FIRST RUBY I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!
not in a parasocial way
Hi Ruby, I've been meaning to add a book to my wishlist you recommended in one of your videos quite a long while ago.. But I can't for the life of me find the title nor the video you mentioned it in... It's a compilation of women's letters and journal entries for each day of the year, if I remember correctly. Hope you can help me out (or anyone else who reads this and knows what book I'm looking for). 😇
Also, don't ever stop sharing your reads and recs! I've added several titles mentioned in this video.
And if anyone cares, my recent reads and new additions to my TBR include: "Legends & Lattes" by Travis Baldree (highly recommend! very low stake, cosy and endearing), "Empire of Shadows" by Jacquelyn Benson (only a few chapters in but very exciting and fun already!) "The Sisterhood" by Liza Mundy (only a few pages in), "Femina" by Janina Ramirez (only a few pages in) and lastly the "Six of Crows" duology by Leigh Bardugo. 📚
First episode in a long while that Ruby did not light something on fire. (In good nature)
Hello Ruby, I have just found your channel. You have some really interesting videos. Thank you for giving so many insights into some wonderful books. I am reading Thomas Hardy's books again. He is an expert on human relationships frailties & complex characters.
Love the variety of your reading. Just off to watch the film Jude the Obscure with Kate Winslet. I remember it being so tragic 😮
I've never watched the film! Do let me know what you think!
@RubyGranger8 oh it is very good, called Jude - 1996 with Kate Winslet. I watched it when it first came out, unfortunately can not find it anywhere now. Too old, I guess.
This will be watched more than once to catch everything 😍
Excellent suggestions, Ruby. Thank you.
Love absolutely everything shared here! Thank you!!
Was literally waiting for it
not to be that person but check the pronunciation of Goethe.
Thank you! I can't believe I mispronounced it honestly because I had such an onslaught when I mispronounced it on TikTok haha! x
@RubyGranger8 Don't worry haha! If any of my fellow Germans come after you please don't take it to heart and I very much apologize if they (in unfortunately typical German fashion) take such things a tad too serious. Anyway, thank you for your lovely reading list, you inspired me to give Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell a second chance!
Bit sad to read mean comments on this, I hope you don't take them to heart. Very interesting round up of your reading year, have added a few to my neverending tbr list 😂 wishing you all the best in 2025 Ruby, your videos are so comforting to watch.
Thank you so much! Your support means a lot, and I hope you have a fantastic 2025 too! x
*PRONUNCIATION!!* In case no one's mentioned it already, Goethe is pronounced 'Gerter' NOT 'Goath'!!
She got multiple comments on TikTok about her incorrect pronunciation of Goethe like a month ago (the comments were generally nice and respectful). Kinda weird to think that Ruby simply ignored them all..
A seasonal recap would be great
I love all of your videos and the books you recommend! My favourite book of the year was Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami! I know you didn't ask for any recommendations but i'd totally recommend to you to read Carlos Ruiz Zafón, specially The Shadow of the Wind, my favourite book of all times. It's a beautiful book about books, it's magical, you should read it bc i bet you'd love it.
This is what I needed 😁
Love this , would like to see your TBR for 2025
I love the Jude film with Kate Winslet and the book. It’s so sad but beautiful. Last year I really enjoyed The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield.
My top 3 favorite books I read this year were:
1. Babel
2. The Serpent & the Wings of Night
3. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Oh my gosh - a moment for Babel!
The girl who couldn’t read is a continuation of Florence and Giles. I read the first book over 10 years ago and really enjoyed it, but heard that the second one was not very good. For some reason I can’t find the girl who couldn’t read for purchase, but I would say maybe check Florence and Giles if you haven’t yet. I’ve been meaning to reread it to see if I still feel the same way about it years later.
The Gardener's Year by Karel Capek (ruminations on gardening in the shadow of oncoming fascism in austira) and The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry (poetry, a lot on nature and farming and quiet moments) were my favorites of the year! I think you'd like both :) thanks for sharing these - excited to add some to my tbr!
Thank you so much for the recommendations!
¡¡Ruby happy 2025 🎆🥂💕!!
I recently put Crime and Punishment on my TBR and also was expecting it to be stuffy, so I’m stoked to hear it’s not!!
The FURTHEST thing from! I can't wait for you to read it!
Hi Ruby. Yes A Seasonal read is a great idea.
Stonehouse Devotional by Charlotte Wood. It was a shortlisted book in The Booker Prize last year. Another one is Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt.
@@racheldemain1940 oh my gosh the Charlotte Wood book looks wonderful! Thank you!
Thankyou for your lovely book reviews Ruby, I watched your Christmas books review which was wonderful, it inspired me to go and buy 3 of the books, A literary Christmas an anthology, The miraculous sweet makers the frost fair, The Nutcracker by Alexandre Dumas which is such a beautiful pretty book with the gold detail and leatherback. I still want to buy The Nutcracker by Sanna Annukka and Little women the puffin in bloom edition which you showed us. I am much older than you at almost 46 yrs old but I still like to read children’s books, sadly my children do not read and will not read regardless of the mountains of books I have bought them over the years, modern technology, xbox, iPads has taken over them which is such a shame
Really nice video, my fave book from last year is Richard III by Shakespeare im currently reading it again i just really emjoy reading it
Thanks so much for this! And would love seasonal book round ups from you
Hi Ruby, this seems like such a lovely video (I'm just about to watch it now!). I have a potential video idea, maybe something like how you manage to fit reading into your day? :)
A book I recommend if you haven't read it already is 'The Girl With the Lousing Voice' by Abi Daré. The writing style in it is really interesting, and you could get through the book within a day or two. I couldn't put it down!
"Quiet" and "Fortnight in September" are both excellent. I recommend Amor Towles' books, especially "A Gentleman in Moscow."
YES! The more (book reviews) the merrier 😁
I love Lyly! There's a fantastic podcast on him and his life on Not Just The Tudors: "The Queer Shakespeare: John Lyly"